Photography for Valerie

Fun holiday shoot

2009-11-22T13:27:00.000-08:00

Maria & Chris had fun chasing around their almost-two-year-old son Athan during this shoot. The little guy is really fast!

I shot Athan during his whole first year every few months so I was looking forward to catching up with him and his parents for this outdoor adventure.

See more here.

Little Gunner Is Back

2009-11-18T06:15:00.000-08:00

It's a lot of fun to watch kids grow up and even more fun to capture those moments through photography so it's always a pleasure to do more than one photo shoot with a family because you get to see how much the babies have grown up. Plus, they are usually able to make tons more funny and expressive faces as they get a little older which makes for really cute photographs.

I first shot Gunner when he was 4 months old. He's now 10 months old and cuter than ever. Plus, it was his first time on a swing!

See more shots here

Caitlin & Chris Engagement Session

2009-10-27T06:18:00.000-07:00

Caitlin & Chris were gracious enough to let me do the photos for their engagement session. The wedding date is set for June 19, 2010. We shot in Old Town Alexandria and made use of the vibrant fall colors, parks, swings, and lots of fallen leaves.

Here's more: http://bit.ly/34IdC

Marine Corps Marathon

2009-10-26T07:05:00.000-07:00

My brother Jeff is a huge running fanatic - he's the manager of a running store in DC, ran a 100-mile race this past February - and ran the Marine Corps Marathon on Sunday. He ran 3 hours, 4 minutes and 34 seconds, which qualified him for the Boston Marathon in April 2010.

My other brother and I were on our bikes following Jeff around the course and making sure to snap as many cool photos as possible.

The course is beautiful and easy to navigate thankfully. Here's a few of my favorites and here's more.

Runners heading under the Memorial Bridge-

Almost at mile 21-

Approaching the finish line-

Oktoberfest at Rustico

2009-10-16T10:27:00.001-07:00

I can't decide if summer or fall is my favorite season but this time of year, I have to lean towards fall just because the weather is perfect, the colors are vibrant and best of all, Oktoberfest beers are in season!

Rustico, a fantastic restaurant in Alexandria, VA, held their annual Oktoberfest block party last weekend. The owners also own several other fine establishments in the area so a bunch of great restaurants were selling really good food plus Rustico is known for its beer selection so the beer was tasty and bountiful.

Cheers to good beer this season!

Full set here: http://bit.ly/vVy8x

Paparazzi, Angels and Little Girls

2009-09-21T08:00:00.000-07:00

I had a wonderful time shooting Julianne & Madeline and their parents this weekend; it was a beautiful fall day, a cloudless blue sky and perfect weather.

We shot mostly at the Jefferson Memorial in DC and ran into some Japanese tourists - who loved taking photos of the girls. It was hysterical. I had never seen anything like this. I mean, I see Asian tourists all the time taking photos of everything but never random American children. A little bizarre but very funny:

And Dad had a wonderful time throwing little Julianne into the air and watching her enjoy every moment:

We headed back to the house for some shots of the girls - this one is a favorite. Julianne was playing in the sheer curtains while her sister watched. I think Julianne looks like a littel angel:

And this last one is another favorite - Madeline is just so precious:

See more shots here: http://www.flickr.com/photos/kjgrabosky/sets/72157622424201580/

Event Photography

2009-09-16T07:22:00.001-07:00

I've been caught up in the past couple weeks doing a lot of photography for press conferences for my job. I had two within the past week at the exact same spot on Capitol Hill, which was pretty cool since the place is perfect for photos. The press conferences dealt with healthcare (I mean, what else is going on up there nowadays anyways?) and involved a few legislators and groups.

Here's a couple of my favorites-

Congressman Chris Smith (R-NJ) in action.

Representative Trent Franks (R-AZ) talking about healthcare and disabilities with parents who have disabled children standing behind him.

My First Cover Photo!

2009-08-05T08:12:00.001-07:00

On Tap Magazine ran my very first cover photo in this month's issue, along with two other great shots for the feature story inside.

The cover is of Lee & Nohelia Smith, Latin dance instructors in the Northern VA/DC area. The feature story is all the sizzling couple: http://www.ontaponline.com/article/11574

I could not be happier for them and for my very first cover. I hope it's only the first of many!

Crystal City Twilight 5K

2009-07-27T16:09:00.000-07:00

Nearly 3,000 runners competed in the Crystal City Twilight 5K in Arlington, VA on Saturday evening. It's one of the only evening races in the area and it's awesome - lots of energy along with thunderstorms moving into the area made for a great race. I went to watch my brothers (below) but took a few photos in the meantime. They placed very well by the way, both in the top 75.

Warming up-

Race start-

My little brother finishing (the one in the blue in the middle)-

Family Time!

2009-06-16T07:06:00.000-07:00

This shoot was a lot of fun - we shot at a playground in Alexandria, VA and on a gazebo overlooking the Potomac River. The kids (and I) had fun on the playground and swings and it was really a joy to see how in love Adam & Stacey still are after almost 14 years of marriage and two kids. What a pleasure to capture those emotions.

I tried to go for a carefree look with the kids and a more vintage, romantic look for the parents.

See more photos here and below are some of my favorites.

Baby boy at the Jefferson Memorial

2009-06-09T07:11:00.000-07:00

Little four-and-a-half-month-old Gunner Hawkins enjoyed a beautiful Sunday with his parents, Kristan & Jonathan, at the Jefferson Memorial last weekend. He is just the cutest little boy. We had a lot of fun shooting in DC and Gunner has the most easy going personality - which made taking photos of him nice and easy.

Here's some of my favorites and click here to see a few more good ones.

Baby Emory

2009-05-19T12:02:00.000-07:00

I did a photo shoot over the weekend of 4-week-old Emory with her loving parents Angela & Seth. She has a full head of hair and was very fiesty and curious. I was lucky to catch some adoring moments between her and her Dad plus some great family photos and Mom and daughter shots. She's just so precious and cute!

You can see more of the shots here but I posted a couple of my favorites below.

DC Improv Funniest College Competition

2009-05-01T11:29:00.000-07:00

The DC Improv had its 6th Annual Funniest College Competition in mid-April where 13 college students in the area competed for the title. In the entire competition there was 12 guys and one girl and she was the one who took home the grand prize. Molly Martinez, a freshman at American University, had the whole place in tears. She is a truly gifted comic and just an overall funny person.

I interviewed her for On Tap Magazine, which is who I was taking these pictures for. Hopefully they will post the article soon and I'll link it up here. UPDATE: Here is the story. In the meantime, here's a couple shots of Molly below with the whole set here.

DC Improv Funniest College in the District Finals

2009-04-22T12:42:00.001-07:00

Coming soon....

I was at the finals of the DC Improv's Funniest College Competition show last week and was taking photos for On Tap Magazine. However, the story and photos don't come out until May 1st so I have to wait to post up the sweet shots until then.

I can say that the winner was Molly Martinez, a freshman from American University. She was the only girl in the group of 13 finalists and really won over the crowd from the start. She was hysterical.

Photos to come next week!

Springtime in DC = Cherry Blossoms

2009-04-04T17:11:00.000-07:00

Waking up before dawn just to see the sunrise come over the Capitol and bathe the cherry blossoms in golden light on the Tidal Basin is totally worth it. I love sunrises anywhere but seeing one during the peak bloom of the beautiful cherry blossom season is amazing.

I have lived in the Washington, DC area for over four years now but I also went to college in DC, so I've had plenty of opportunities to enjoy the cherry blossoms. Taking photos of them never gets old, especially since its more challenging as I grow as a photographer. I'm always looking for that new angle or new way of seeing the blossoms that I haven't before. I think I got a couple of them this morning. See the full set here.

This is my favorite shot - I was playing around with the focus on the lens and came up with this shot of the cherry blossoms and a blurred Washington Monument.

Here's another shot that I came up with that's a little different from others I have taken. I tried to get a good view of Thomas Jefferson and the blossoms and I saw him hiding out in the blossoms on this shot.

Little Girls

2009-03-30T12:29:00.000-07:00

I shot an adorable pair of sisters over the weekend at their home. We hoped to go outside but the weather was very wet and dreary unfortunately. The mom & dad were so cute with their daughters and it was easy to see the loving bonds between all of them. The oldest little girl is 19-months-old and the baby is just 5-months-old. Two of my favorites are below and here's a couple more.

This is my favorite solo shot. I have no idea why it's so funny but I crack up whenever I see this picture; it's so cute.

I thought this picture was so precious of dad & his daughter:

Kids Soccer + Relaxation

2009-03-23T07:50:00.001-07:00

This weekend I was in Fredericksburg, Virginia, an old Civil War town, beautiful and quaint and about an hour south of Washington, DC. There was a St. Patrick's Day soccer tournament taking place in one of the many parks in area.

This particular boys team was planning to advance to the championship game of their division. Unfortunately they lost to their opponents and went home early, but they did give me some great action shots to capture.

While also in Fredericksburg, I stayed at a cozy little bed & breakfast, the Inn at Olde Silk Mill, right on the border of Old Town. It had antique furniture galore plus a beautiful grand staircase entrance. The room was small and the floors creaked with the slightest movement but the place was incredibly relaxing and charming. Here's one of my favorite shots from the room:

Happy 1st Birthday Athan!

2009-03-09T10:26:00.001-07:00

I've chronicled Athan's entire life - from the day he was born until now - with various photo shoots every few months. It's been a real pleasure following him through photography and I've loved every minute. Kids grow so fast their first year and it's really neat to view their progress through pictures.

Here's all the shots from Athan's birthday party with a couple of my favorites below.

I got there a little early and caught Athan waking up from a mid-morning nap. He's displaying his cuddly behavior with his mama in this shot.

Opening up presents with his mom.

Impromptu Baby Shoot

2009-03-06T12:15:00.000-08:00

My friend Meredith was in town this past weekend with her 4-month-old bundle of joy, Gavin. With those big eyes and adorable little features, how could I not take pictures of him. Gavin is a happy little baby and the bond between mom and baby is undeniable, which I tried to capture in these shots.

Baby on Board

2009-03-02T14:03:00.000-08:00

Angela's baby shower was hosted at the Liberty Tavern in Arlington, Virginia over the weekend. The girls got together for a fantastic brunch and showered Angela with lots of baby stuff. Her little girl is due in the beginning of April.

Liberty Tavern was a little dark and Angela sat right in front of the bright window so I got to fool around with more of the manual settings on my camera for these shots. I did several black and white shots to add to the timelessness of the day and tried to capture the joyful emotions of Angela's friends having a good time.

The full set is available here.

The mother-to-be

Friends of Angela

2nd Place Photo Finish

2009-02-26T06:27:00.001-08:00

I just found out that a photo of mine has won 2nd place in the Snapfish.com's "What Does Love Look Like?" Valentine's Day Contest. You can see my photo (below) plus the others here.

I took this photo of my brother and his girlfriend kissing in Time Square the day after Christmas in 2008. I had them try to replicate the famous photo of the solider kissing a nurse in Time Square after World War II. I love that timeless picture and my brother and his girlfriend were all too happy to pose for me several times!

Here's my 2nd place photo:

Valentine's Baby

2009-02-12T07:40:00.000-08:00

Love and babies go together of course so last night I set up a little studio at Maria & Chris' house and took photos of their 11-month-old son, Athan. He's a happy little baby with a serious side, which made for some really cute pictures. I think one of the hardest things in shooting kids this age is that they want to put everything in their mouths. The trick is snatching it with impressive speed and then immediately providing a distraction - Maria & Chris soon became experts at the technique.

Precious Baby Shots

2009-02-11T10:01:00.000-08:00

Here's a couple photos from a small shoot I did last week of little 10-month-old Sophia. Shooting moving kids is a whole other ballgame than shooting still babies. You really have to go with the flow and learn to follow the child around, hoping for a good smile or expression. Sophia's proud parents were extremely helpful in keeping her in an area of good light and calling her name to get her attention. She was easily entertained by plugs in the wall instead of by squeaky toys but in the end, her curiosity of some other, less dangerous, stuffed animals and smiles to her parents really provided some great shots.

The rest of the photos I posted are up here.

Starting Out - Latest Shoot: Life Prizes Award Ceremony in DC

2009-02-02T13:37:00.000-08:00

So I've decided to start up my photography blog to go with my website because it's really neat to be able to post recent shoots and events and plus, my blog just means more photos, which is great.

In that light, here's my most recent event, the Life Prizes award ceremony and reception at the National Building Museum in Washington, D.C. I had never been there and it is, by far, one of the more impressive buildings (besides the Capitol & Library of Congress) that I've been to in the city. It was a pleasure taking photos for the awards ceremony. I found that using natural light was a bit tough since it took place in the evening, just after dusk, yet I think I did alright. Here's a link to all the photos and I posted a few of the best below.

The inside of the National Building Museum, set up for the event

Lila Rose, 20-year-old UCLA student, a recipient of the Life Prizes Award

I enjoy taking concert photos and luckily, one band, BarlowGirl, performed at this awards ceremony so I was able to shoot them during their sets